Question

IS DSL SIGNAL STRENGTH DEPENDENT ON DISTANCE FROM CENTRAL OFFICE TO MY LOC?

i recently left home for 2 months, and rather than incur charges for turning off my DSL and charges for turning it back on (criminy!), i just left it on and paid the 2 month charges.

when i came home and reconnected the DSL modem, i had NO SERVICE at all. after haggling with 3 tech supports, we got it working, sort of.

i've had lousy DSL speed from the start, but now, it's pathetically so. the last tech at the service i use, at&t, told me that i might as well have a dialup... all because there was over 17,000 feet between my computer and their central office and the signal weakens over this distance.

didnt fiber optic cables change all that?? or is att full of horse patooty?

i'm really suspicious, because the tech told me she had to turn the signal down even further, from the original setting to get my service running again. why? nothing on my end changed. i was getting d/l speeds of about 330 kbps - now i'd be happy with even that! well, actually, i'd be happy with what i should be getting for what i'm paying - 1.5 mbps

All Answers

Absolutely!

DSL is indeed distance sensitive, and if you're at 17000 feet from the CO, you're right at the ragged edge of the spec distance limit of 17,500ft. It is no wonder that you have signal degradation at that distance from the CO.

DSL signal travels over copper, so Fibre does not help your situation ... fibre may be used to connect the remote terminal (if you go through one) to the CO, or will be used upstream of the DSLAM at the CO, however, the feed that carrys the DSL signal to the demarc at your house is copper, and if that feed is approaching the DSL limit of 17,500 cable feet, then you could have trouble.

I've heard however true or not, that because of these limitations, that the telco's in some areas refuse to install DSL if over, say 15000 feet to the CO or remote terminal, because of the problems and degradation of the signal as it nears the 17500ft limit.

So what's the bottom line? If your telco does not have plans to deploy a remote terminal to shorten your DSL cable distance, then check with your cable provider and consider switching to cable-delivered broadband.

You bet it is.........

When DSL was relatively new, the providers used to tell us there was a 2.5 mile maximum distance allowed where they could provide adequate service. Outside of that limit, they couldn't garantee anything.

Have you looked into what some services refer to as Wireless DSL? They broadcast a signal from repeaters which is then picked up by a special receiver on your roof. From there, the signal travels via CAT5 cable down and through the wall to a tiny modem which is then connected to your computer. It works great, especially in rural areas where cable or wireless isn't an option. I paid for 1.5mbps with my service and received exactly that, sometimes higher.

So, what happened?

As you have been advised, the DSL signal does travel over the coper phone lines, and the signal does weaken as it travels from the central switch that you are connected to.

As to the other part of the question, why did DSL suddenly become unusable while you were away?

The most benign answer is that the the phone line that you are connected to deteriorated just enough while you were gone to attenuate the signal past the point of working.

Another possibility is that a repair to the line also caused the signal to weaken. If there was a storm in the area that took down phone lines, or a construction project that broke a line while digging, that could be the culprit.

Looking for other ideas, is there any new phone equipment in your house?

Have you eliminated issues with your house wiring by connecting the DSL modem directly to where the phone line enters with the rest of the house disconnected? While damage to the external phone line is more likely, damage to your phone lines could also cause problems.

Do you have DSL filters on each phone?Or, do you have a service splitter?

Degradation of either component could be the cause of you weak signal.

You guys are the greatest!

i worked with one tech, disconnecting all the other phones, which did have filters, but i disconnected anyway. it helped very little.

there was extensive construction work here, so i'm guessing that was the culprit. dunno if my telco has the wireless, and at this point, not sure i care. when sbc bought at&t, i figured it would improve att's poor quality service, but seems the bad corrupted the good... generally speaking of course. there will always be terrific individuals that actually know what they're doing.

anywho, i'm going cable. while in s. cali, i had cable and was amazed at the speed. i'll be paying about $10-15 extra, and will have to rearrange the furniture, but it'll be worth it, i'm sure.

Start or search

Create a new discussion

If you're asking for technical help, please be sure to include all your system info, including operating system, model number, and any other specifics related to the problem. Also please exercise your best judgment when posting in the forums--revealing personal information such as your e-mail address, telephone number, and address is not recommended.

Post type

Subject title

Topic Tags

Select up to 3 tags (1 tag required)

Cloud

Piracy

Security

Apple

Microsoft

IT Employment

Google

Open Source

Mobility

Social Enterprise

Community

Smartphones

Operating Systems

Windows

Mac

Malware

Tablets

Networking

Browser

Hardware

Software

Web Developerment

Linux

Off Topic

Message Body

Track this discussion and email me when there are updates

Please note: Do not post advertisements, offensive material, profanity, or personal attacks. Please remember to be considerate of other members. If you're new to the TechRepublic Forums, please read our TechRepublic Forums FAQ. All submitted content is subject to our Terms Of Use.